The present invention relates to a device for preventing unauthorized use of card- or disk-shaped proofs of legitimacy and/or data carriers, such as ATM cards, credit cards and flexible disks and, in particular, to a mechanical device for preventing such unauthorized use.
Consumers are vulnerable to credit card and bank card fraud when a card is lost or stolen. Safety programs proposed and used up to nowxe2x80x94e.g. centralized xe2x80x9con linexe2x80x9d stop payment registersxe2x80x94have not proven to be sufficiently effective. Moreover, no solution has been found to the problem of bridging the frequently long time interval from the point of time at which the true card owner loses his card up to the point of time at which the corresponding information has been entered in a computer file. Often the credit-card owner does not realize that the card is missing until after the unauthorized use of the card. Thus, such safety procedures do not provide comprehensive protection from the vantage point of the consumer.
Although methods for preventing credit card and bank card fraud have been developed, such as applying a photograph of the owner or a reflection hologram to the card, such solutions have proven cumbersome and/or expensive. In any event, these security-oriented methods can only be implemented in a centralized fashion. In the absence of, and perhaps even in addition to centralized protection, the individual consumer desires local, personal protection.
It is previously known to electronically validate credit cards and the like each time before they are used, thereby to prevent improper use. For example, DE 3,131,761 discloses a device for this purpose. Such devices require, however, that the receiver of the card or data carrier has recourse to electronic equipment indicating whether the correct validating operation has been made. In contrast the present invention requires no recourse to external data equipment of any kind.
The most effective method for preventing the fraud is to invalidate the stolen or lost card and to preventing its use altogether. A device of this kind is known from French Patent Application 2,445,429. In the known device the security shield consists of two electrically conducting layers which are separated from each other by an insulating layer and which are disposed against or preferably in the walls of the container. The processing circuit is arranged in such a way that if a short-circuit occurs between the electrically conducting layers which are separated from each other, the damaging means are activated. The safety container is large, the object being the protection of large-scale conveying between defined locations. The manufacture of the container and the mechanism thereof is intricate and requires great precision, making such devices costly. The safety enclosures described are also very large and are impractical for routine personal use.
Great-Britain Patent No. 2,006,322 discloses a safety enclosure for credit cards, provided with a mechanical-combination lock and mechanical means causing projecting of a material which makes the credit cards unusable with a break-in attempt. Said mechanical means are sensitive and thus bring a danger of accidental triggering even for the authorized user.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,722,435 to Mareels et al. discloses a small case which may be put in a pocket by the user thereof, and which allows conveying valuable documents on a personal basis. The case encloses a capsule containing a liquid that can destroy or make unusable the documents. The capsule is made from a fusible material, as a whole or in part, and may also be closed with a plug made from such a material. The case comprises electric means for opening or unplugging the capsule in the case of a break-in attempt on the case.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,598,792 to Wales discloses a credit card security device for preventing credit card fraud. The device includes a case with an access door secured by a lock for storing the cards and a detection member within the case for determining an entry into the case when the door is locked. The detection member operates an electromagnet within the case upon entry. The electromagnet scrambles the code contained in the magnetic strip of each credit card, thereby invalidating the credit cards for future use. The detection member comprises a normally open electrical circuit when the door is closed and locked and includes switches for providing a current flow to the invalidating electromagnet upon the entry. At least one such switch is a normally open pressure switch mounted in the wall of the case, which closes when the entry to the case is through the wall, thereby providing the current flow to the electromagnet. Another switch is associated with the lock and is open when the lock is unlocked, thereby precluding a current flow through the circuit. The switch closes when the door is forcibly opened while locked, thereby providing the current flow to the electromagnet and invalidating the credit cards stored within the device.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,942,831 to Tel discloses a safety box comprising a multi-layered wall having provided therein at least one conductor, which responds by interruption or short-circuiting to damage caused to the wall, and which, if the wall is damaged, activates a circuit connected to said conductor. In response to activation of said circuit, documents contained in said safety box are marked or destroyed via an ignition means. The wall of the safety box is provided with electric shield means. In order to increase the response reliability of the circuit, the invention provides the feature that the shield means is galvanically separate from the circuit.
The above-mentioned security devices have several drawbacks. The electrical circuitry complicates the device and necessitates a power source. Moreover, fluctuations or temporary curtailment of current from the power source can trigger the deactivation mechanism, thereby rendering the stored cards useless. The devices are heavy and bulky, making routine personal use impractical. In addition, the sophistication of the mechanisms appreciably increases production costs.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,804,826 to Hertzen discloses a device for preventing unauthorized use of data carriers, such as ATM cards, credit cards and flexible disks, comprising a cover or case-shaped device or the like having at least one pocket or the like adapted to receive at least one card, disk, etc., actuators and control means arranged in said pocket, said control means being adapted to control said actuators and preferably being of the code lock type and comprising one or more means which, when actuated in a certain sequence or in a certain combination, are adapted to control said actuators. The actuators comprise means which are activatable when an attempt at gaining access is made without proper actuation of said control means and which, in the event of such an attempt at unauthorized access, are adapted to permanently mechanically damage said card, disk etc. and/or the data carried thereon.
The disclosed embodiments include chemical, mechanical, magnetic, and electrical actuators. Regarding magnetic actuators, it is taught that the device is characterized by actuators comprising at least one magnet or the like adapted to negatively affect the information magnetically stored on said card or disk when an attempt at removing said card is made without proper actuation of said control means.
A mechanical embodiment of the device may comprise a cover- or case-shaped card holder having at least one insert opening which is adapted to the cross-section of the credit card. The card holder may accommodate a plurality of actuating or marking means provided with marking or cutting edges and activated by external control means, and preferably eccentric holding means which allow insertion of a card into the holder, but which on extraction of the card urge it against the side where the marking means are positioned. By setting correctly the control means which may consist of laterally displaceable buttons, the edges of the actuating or marking means can be moved away from the card, whereupon the authorized user can readily extract the card. However, if an attempt at extracting is made without the correct setting, the surface of the card will be cut or scratched. As a result of the damage to the card, the receiver will notice immediately that the card is being used without authorization.
In a preferred embodiment provided in the above-mentioned patent, the container comprises an outer casing and an inner part. The outer casing is completely closed except for a slot-shaped opening at one end. One side of the outer casing is provided with a keyboard and a display window for a minicalculator of the very flat type. The keyboard also serves as control means for actuating an encoding unit. On one side, the interior of the outer casing is provided with contact rails adapted to be in electric contact with sheet metal contacts situated in the inner part. The contact rails are connected with a protective winding or protective net comprising a large number of windings of thin conducting wire integrated with the material forming the outer casing. Any damage to the outer casing causes a control circuit to open or close, whereby the safety device is triggered.
One long side of the outer casing is provided with a hook-shaped recess and a through hole, the function of which will be described below. The inner part comprises an open frame and an end portion accommodating the locking means and the electronics unit. The frame is adapted to hold a plurality of credit cards or at least one credit card when the inner part is received in the outer casing. Loops of thin conducting wire are integrated with the frame like in the outer casing, and any damage to said conducting wire causes triggering of the safety device.
The inner part is locked mechanically in the outer casing, but the locking is controlled by an electronic component, which in turn is controlled by the keyboard. The mechanical locking means comprises a locking hook engaging the recess in the outer casing and being actuated by a push button which is moving in the opening in the outer casing. The locking hook and the push button are arrested in normal position by a locking arm, which in its nonactuated state prevents the button from being pressed. The locking arm is operated by an electromagnet or the like which, when activated, causes the locking arm to pivot away from its position, arresting the push button and the locking hook, provided however that the correct code has been entered on the keyboard.
Various embodiments of the above-mentioned U.S. Pat. No. 4,804,826 to Hertzen describe security devices with advantages relative to the known art. Like previously-mentioned devices, however, the disclosed security devices have significant drawbacks. It can be appreciated that the devices described above are sophisticated and generally include electrical circuitry to prevent successful removal of the card through the walls of the device. Such mechanisms complicate the device, necessitate a power source, and make the credit cards prone to accidental deactivation resulting from fluctuations and/or temporary curtailment of current from the power source. Moreover, the sophisticated mechanisms appreciably increase the cost of production. It must be emphasized that the needs of the consumer dictate that the device be reliable and robust, more importantly, that the device be compact and easy to use, and perhaps most importantly, that the device be inexpensive. Thus, due to the drawbacks in the prior art, no such device has been successfully introduced in the market, the acute need for such a security device notwithstanding.
Some of the prior-art mechanisms are actually simple and reliable regarding the unauthorized removal of the card via the normal mode of removal, e.g. door, slot, etc. The complication and expense associated with devices of the prior art primarily result from the need to protect against the unauthorized penetration through the walls of the device and substantially unimpaired removal of the card.
It would be advantageous to have a credit card security device that overcomes the various deficiencies inherent in the known devices. It would be of further advantage to provide the consumer with a device that is robust and reliable, and more compact, lightweight, simple to use and more economical than devices conceived heretofore.
According to the teachings of the present invention there is provided a device for preventing unauthorized use of data carriers, such as credit cards, ATM cards, and flexible disks, comprising a case-shaped device having at least one pocket or the like with a slot or opening, said pocket adapted to receive at least one card, disk, etc., a magnet affixed to a sliding arm, and a lock, said lock being adapted to control the sliding arm such that unauthorized removal of said card through said opening results in deactivation of the magnetic strip of said card.
In a preferred embodiment, the device comprises a case-shaped device having at least one pocket or the like with a slot or opening, said pocket adapted to receive at least one card, disk, etc., a magnet affixed to an arm, and a lock, said lock being adapted to control the arm such that unauthorized removal of said card through said opening results in deactivation of the magnetic strip of said card, and wherein said arm is affixed and positioned within said device such that prying apart walls of said device triggers said arm, resulting in deactivation of the magnetic strip of said card.
In another preferred embodiment, the motion of the arm and the magnet affixed thereto is a sliding action.
In another preferred embodiment, the device further comprises a spring or the like that exerts continual pressure on the side of the credit card, forcing the credit card to be pressed against the wall of the device, such that when unauthorized access of the credit card is attempted by prying apart the walls of the device, the credit card is pushed out of position, thereby releasing the arm and deactivating the credit card.
In another preferred embodiment, said lock comprises a protruding tooth, and said lock can be manipulated such that said protruding tooth blocks said sliding arm, thereby allowing the safe removal of said card.
In a preferred embodiment, said sliding arm comprises a protrusion that is held in place by said card, such that removal of said card while said protruding tooth on said lock is disengaged from said sliding arm, releases said sliding arm and results in deactivation of said card.
In another preferred embodiment, said protrusion on said sliding arm is attached to the casing of the device, such that prying apart the walls of said casing separates said protrusion from said card, thereby releasing said sliding arm and deactivating said credit card.
In yet another preferred embodiment, the device further comprises a safety snap that prevents inadvertent removal of the card by the user, such that accidental invalidation of the card is averted.
It is appreciated that no device is impregnable, and that those skilled in the art of xe2x80x9cbreak-insxe2x80x9d can often succeed in opening security devices like those of the present invention. In a preferred embodiment, the inner workings of the device according to the present invention can be manufactured in several alternative configurations, without any visible differences in the outward appearance of the device, such that an individual attempting unauthorized access of the credit card through the walls of the device will have difficulty identifying the internal structure, thereby appreciably reducing the opportunity or successful removal of the card. Many modifications in the size, structure and placement of the global mechanism of the device are possible, as well as local modifications in the size, structure and placement of the spring acting on the credit card, the magnetic plate, and the sliding arm.
In another preferred embodiment, the device further comprises a keyhole through which said arm is cocked by a key before initial use and after improper withdrawal of the card.
As used herein in the specification and claims section below, the phrase xe2x80x9copportunity for successfully removing a cardxe2x80x9d and the like refer to the probability of removing a functional card in a relatively short period of time.
As used herein in the specification and claims section below, the phrase xe2x80x9cunauthorized removalxe2x80x9d and the like refer to the removal of the cardxe2x80x94either through the slot or opening, or by prying apart the walls of the devicexe2x80x94when the protruding tooth on the lock is disengaged from the sliding arm, such that removal of the card releases the sliding arm and results in deactivation of the card.